This personal wire delivers the news you want in real-time

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The Pound Nine Wire is real-time newswire that sits on your desk, continually streaming headlines from your content sources.

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Do you like to know what’s going on while at work, but hate reaching for your phone or having to open a new browser? So did Brad Warezak. That’s why he and his team at Pound Nine have come up with a solution to this all-too-common conundrum.

The Pound Nine Wire is a Wi-Fi-enabled, battery-operated device that conveniently sits on your desk, allowing you to keep your phone in your pocket and Internet tabs closed at all times. The tabletop-friendly gadget will continually stream up-to-the-minute information from your preset list of sites. This can be anything from the day’s breaking news, to shopping deals, to social media updates, to stock quotes, to sports scores to the latest Hollywood gossip. You  even add your own compatible RSS feeds.

How it works is pretty straightforward: First, you select from a menu of sources on the Pound Nine website via your PC or smartphone. The updates are then aggregated and streamed to your device in real-time. It’s as simple as that! Just glance at your own personal newswire to stay informed while you stay focused on the task at hand.

And should you want to know more information about a particular update that scrolls on by, the Pound Nine Wire provides you with quick access to additional content. By pressing the ‘notify’ button on top of the device, you’ll instantly receive a notification message on your phone via its accompanying mobile app.

Based on an ATxmega256A3U, the unit is equipped with a Wi-Fi module for connectivity, a 3.2” color touchscreen for a display and a lithium-ion battery for power. It can also be plugged into any standard wall outlet. Although the electronics in the current prototype are housed within a 3D-printed enclosure, the final product that ships to backers will be comprised of injection molded plastic. Measuring only three inches tall and four inches wide, the Pound Nine Wire will be a welcomed novelty to any desk, table or nightstand.

Want one of your own? Head over to its Kickstarter campaign, where the Pound Nine team is seeking $40,000. Delivery is expected to get underway in May 2016.

ATxmega256A3U powers Oscilloscope Watch

A Maker by the name of Gabriel Anzziani has designed a rather impressive oscilloscope watch built around Atmel’s versatile ATxmega256A3U MCU.

The device boasts all the trappings of a modern watch (time, calendar and alarm), along with all the features of the popular Xprotolab -oscilloscope, waveform generator, logic analyzer, protocol sniffer and frequency counter.

“With access to the hardware design, users can write their own applications. The brain of the device is a powerful 8-bit XMEGA microcontroller, easy to program in C or assembly,” Anzziani explained in a recent Kickstarter post. “Special attention has been given to extend the battery life of the device. When the oscilloscope is not used, the analog section is turned off, so the estimated battery life will be over 30 days on each charge. When using the oscilloscope, the battery will last about 12 hours.”

Aside from Atmel’s stalwart ATxmega256A3U, key Oscilloscope Watch specs include:

• Sharp Memory LCD display 1.28″, 128×128 pixels
• Approximate watch size: 2″ x 1.6″ x 0.6″
• Li-Ion Battery 400mAh, rechargeable via the micro USB connector
• Internal PDI interface
• 4 tactile switches
• USB connectivity: PC app, Android app.

Oscilloscope-specific features include:

• Two analog inputs
• Maximum sampling rate: 4MSPS
• Analog bandwidth: 200kHz
• Resolution: 8bits
• Input impedance: 1MΩ, 15pF
• Buffer size per channel: 4096 bytes
• Input voltage range: -14V to +20V

According to Anzziani, the electronic design is ready, with the firmware similar to that of the Xprotolab’s, plus watch-specific functions.

“The first revision of the PCB is ready – a four layer board. Most resistors and capacitors are size 0805, and most ICs are not in the tiniest package available, so there is room for improvement for the next version,” he added.

“The PCB assembly has been modeled in 3D in order to design the enclosure, a home made enclosure has been built. This an initial prototype, the final design will have a better look, and the goal is to make the size smaller.”

Interested in learning more about the Atmel-powered Oscilloscope Watch? You can check out the official Kickstarter page here.